Postmodernism is an attitude towards art that emphasizes social justice, personal freedom, accessibility and expression through any medium â conventional or otherwise. It seeks to separate itself from the confines of modernism by openly opposing the norms. It embraces popular culture in a way that challenges conventional boundaries and breathes life into the artistsâ diverse personal experiences and views of the world. It forces its viewers to look at life in a way that may be uncomfortable or inconvenient.
Challenging the art world
Guerrilla Girls, Youâre seeing less than half the pictureâŠ., 1989, Photolithograph on paper
Escaping the confines of museums and other traditional venues
Barbara Kruger, Untitled (We have received orders not to move), 1982, photograph
Collapsing boundaries between âhighâ and âlowâ art
Jeff Koons, Bouquet of Tulips, 2019, sculpture
Marcel Duchamp, L.H.O.O.Q, 1919, pencil
Kiki Smith, Woman on Pyre, 2001, sculpture
Frank Gehry, Neuer Zollhof, Dusseldorf, Germany; 1999
Pablo Picasso painting with light, Photograph by Gjon Mili, 1949
Richard Prince, Portraits, 2019, Installation image
Gregory Crewdson, Woman in Bathroom, 2013, photograph
Masami Teraoka, View From Here to Eternity, 1993; woodcut, etching, aquatint and ink on paper
Recontextualizing the familiar
Kate Beynon, Sangeeta and Fuji, 2014, acrylic on linen
Sangeeta Sandrasegar, Theatre of the Oppressed, 2007-2008 â cartridge paper, foil paper, watercolor
Eileen Agar, Angel of Anarchy, 1936-1940
Franz Falckenhaus, unknown date, mixed media collage
Michael Ray Charles, Forever Free (Mountain), 2019
Rene Magritte, The treachery of images (This is not a pipe), 1928-1929; oil, canvas
Contructing new identities
Cindy Sherman, Untitled #153, 1985, photograph
Sir Stanley Spencer, The Centurionâs Servant, 1914